BACKGROUND: We have little information about long-term treatment results of tinea unguium based on the treatment methods and oral antifungal agents used in dermatology. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess the confirmed effectiveness and side effects of antifungal agents and to investigate the ratio of patients who completely finished the course of treatment in the practical area, not in the experimental studies. METHODS: The medical records of 684 patients diagnosed with tinea unguium from January 1985 to December 1996 in Yeungnam l.Jniversity Hospital were analysed for the results. RESULTS: The number of patients who were diagnosed with tinea unguium during this period was 684. In this study, we segregafed the patients whose outcome could be confirmed and calculated the percentage of completely treated and improved cases according to the antifungal agents used (griseofulvin-7.0%, ketoconazole-8.2%, itraconazole-9.0%, terbinafine-13.7%). We also calculated the percentage of patients who had completely finished the course of treatment (griseofulvin-6.8%, ketoconazole-7.4%, itraconazole-32.S%, terbinafine-31.8%). Among the patients whose results were unknown, more than half of patients(51.7%) had discontinued treatment within 3 weeks. The frequency of side effects of griseofulvin was 5.27a, ketoconazole 11.1%, itraconazole 6.7%, and terbinafine 6.1%. CONCLUSION: The treatment results of tinea unguium in clinical fields are different from results of previously reported studies. The percentages of completely treated and improved cases and those of patients who had completely finished the course of treatment are much lower than the results of previous experimental studies. Jt may be due to low compliance of patients and the long-term treatment course required. To increase the patients compliance and improve the results of treatment, we should explain to the patients about the disease course and duration of the treatment.
Antifungal Agents* ; Compliance ; Dermatology ; Griseofulvin ; Humans ; Itraconazole ; Ketoconazole ; Medical Records ; Onychomycosis* ; Patient Compliance* ; Tinea*

Congenital smooth muscle hamartoma(CSMH), a rare congenital benign tumor of the skin, usually appears at birth as skin colored or slightly hyperpigmented patches or plaques, sometimes with lightly pigmented vellus hairs. Histopathologically it has a marked hyperplasia of well-demarcated smooth muscle bundles in the dermis. We report a case of CSMH in a 4-month-old male infant, who had had hypertrichosis, rippling and multiple light brown colored macules on both his lower extremites since birth. Histopathologically, markedly proliferated smooth muscle buildles were scattered throughout the retucular dermis.
Dermis ; Hair ; Hamartoma* ; Humans ; Hyperplasia ; Hypertrichosis ; Infant ; Male ; Muscle, Smooth* ; Parturition ; Skin

Canine MDR1 gene mutations produce translated P-glycoprotein, an active drug efflux transporter, resulting in dysfunction or over-expression. The 4-base deletion at exon 4 of MDR1 at nucleotide position 230 (nt230[del4]) in exon 4 makes P-glycoprotein lose function, leading to drug accumulation and toxicity. The G allele of the c.-6-180T>G variation in intron 1 of MDR1 (single nucleotide polymorphism [SNP] 180) causes P-glycoprotein over-expression, making epileptic dogs resistant to phenobarbital treatment. Both of these mutations are reported to be common in collies. This study develops a more efficient method to detect these two mutations simultaneously, and clarifies the genotype association with the side effects of chemotherapy. Genotype distribution in Taiwan was also investigated. An oligonucleotide microarray was successfully developed for the detection of both genotypes and was applied to clinical samples. No 4-base deletion mutant allele was detected in dogs in Taiwan. However, the G allele variation of SNP 180 was spread across all dog breeds, not only in collies. The chemotherapy adverse effect percentages of the SNP 180 T/T, T/G, and G/G genotypes were 16.7%, 6.3%, and 0%, respectively. This study describes an efficient way for MDR1 gene mutation detection, clarifying genotype distribution, and the association with chemotherapy.
Alleles ; Animals ; Dogs ; Drug Therapy ; Exons ; Genotype ; Introns ; Methods ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; P-Glycoprotein ; Phenobarbital ; Taiwan

YKL-40, a secreted glycoprotein, may serve as an autoantigen, which mediates multiple inflammatory diseases and cancers. A high YKL-40 serum level is correlated with metastasis and poor survival in a variety of human cancers. However, the role of YKL-40 in dogs is still under evaluation. Herein, we examined the associations between plasma YKL-40 level and YKL-40 autoantibody (YAA) titers with malignancy and prognosis in canine cancer. Plasma levels of YKL-40 in healthy dogs (n = 20) and in dogs (n = 82) with cancer were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Our results indicated that plasma YKL-40 levels were significantly higher (p < 0.01) in dogs with cancer than in healthy dogs. A significant decrease in the YAA titers was detected in the dogs with cancer when compared with those of the healthy dogs (p < 0.05), although the change was not correlated with the YKL-40 levels. Among the dogs with cancer, plasma YKL-40 levels in the dogs that later relapsed or had metastasis were significantly higher than in the dogs with no signs of relapse (p < 0.01) or metastasis (p <0.05). The relapse and metastasis rates were significantly higher in the high YKL-40 group (> 180 pg/mL) than in the low YKL-40 group (< 180 pg/mL). The results imply that plasma YKL-40 levels might have the potential to be developed as a marker of malignancy progression and prognosis in canine cancers.
Animals ; Autoantibodies ; Autoantigens ; Dogs ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Glycoproteins ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Plasma ; Prognosis ; Recurrence

Acidosis ; Alanine Transaminase ; Animals ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Bilirubin ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Urea Nitrogen ; Carbon Dioxide ; Creatinine ; Electrolytes ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Hematocrit ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Liver ; Magnesium ; Male ; Oxygen ; Potassium ; Rats ; Resuscitation ; Shock, Hemorrhagic ; Sodium

Currently, the optimal resuscitation fluid remains debatable. Therefore, in the present study, we designed a trometamol-balanced solution (TBS) for use as a resuscitation fluid for hemorrhagic shock. Hemorrhagic shock was induced in 18 male Wistar-Kyoto rats, which were assigned to normal saline (NS), Ringer's solution (RS), and TBS groups. During the hemorrhagic state, their hemodynamic parameters were recorded using an Abbott i-STAT analyzer with the CG4+ cartridge (for pH, pressure of carbon dioxide, pressure of oxygen, total carbon dioxide, bicarbonate, base excess, oxygen saturation, and lactate), the CG6+ cartridge (for sodium, potassium, chloride, blood glucose, blood urea nitrogen, hematocrit, and hemoglobin), and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits (calcium, magnesium, creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, bilirubin, and albumin). Similar trends were found for the parameters of biochemistries, electrolytes, and blood gas, and they revealed no significant changes after blood withdrawal-induced hemorrhagic shock. However, the TBS group showed more effective ability to correct metabolic acidosis than the NS and RS groups. TBS was a feasible and safe resuscitation solution in this study and may be an alternative to NS and RS for resuscitation in hemorrhagic shock patients without liver damage.

Currently, the optimal resuscitation fluid remains debatable. Therefore, in the present study, we designed a trometamol-balanced solution (TBS) for use as a resuscitation fluid for hemorrhagic shock. Hemorrhagic shock was induced in 18 male Wistar-Kyoto rats, which were assigned to normal saline (NS), Ringer's solution (RS), and TBS groups. During the hemorrhagic state, their hemodynamic parameters were recorded using an Abbott i-STAT analyzer with the CG4+ cartridge (for pH, pressure of carbon dioxide, pressure of oxygen, total carbon dioxide, bicarbonate, base excess, oxygen saturation, and lactate), the CG6+ cartridge (for sodium, potassium, chloride, blood glucose, blood urea nitrogen, hematocrit, and hemoglobin), and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits (calcium, magnesium, creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, bilirubin, and albumin). Similar trends were found for the parameters of biochemistries, electrolytes, and blood gas, and they revealed no significant changes after blood withdrawal-induced hemorrhagic shock. However, the TBS group showed more effective ability to correct metabolic acidosis than the NS and RS groups. TBS was a feasible and safe resuscitation solution in this study and may be an alternative to NS and RS for resuscitation in hemorrhagic shock patients without liver damage.